Fusion — the same process that powers the stars — works by compressing hydrogen atoms with such speed and force that they fuse and release energy.
In 2022, the National Ignition Facility achieved fusion ignition for the first time, proving the conditions required. NIF used laser-driven inertial confinement fusion, a method built for research, not commercial power.
We're building on that breakthrough with pulser fusion. Instead of lasers, we use powerful electrical pulses to more efficiently compress hydrogen atoms to the conditions needed for fusion.
Our system is powered by the Impedance-Matched Marx Generator, a next-generation pulser co-invented by our CTO and co-founder, Keith LeChien.
Our pulser modules advance on decades of pulsed-power technology, including the Marx Generators used by the Z Machine at Sandia National Labs.
Our fusion system consists of 156 pulser modules, a central fusion chamber, and a fusion target the size of a pencil eraser.
The pulser modules store electrical energy and release it in fast pulses.
Capacitors charge.
Capacitors discharge, efficiently delivering their stored energy through the modules.
Energy travels through modules and then pulse tubes toward the fusion chamber.
Energy from many transmission lines is coupled into two electrodes, which drive current through the target, electromagnetically compressing it in less than 100 billionths of a second.
Hydrogen atoms fuse into (heavier) helium atoms, releasing energy.